Page images
PDF
EPUB

28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are :

29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God

is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption :

31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

28 Και τα αγενη του κοσμου και τα εξουθενημένα εξελέξατο ὁ Θεός, και τα μη οντας ίνα τα οντα καταργηση

29 Όπως μη καυχήσηται πασα σαρξ ενωπιον αυτού

30 Εξ αυτου δε ύμεις εςε εν Χριςῳ Ιησού, ός εγενήθη ήμιν σοφια απο Θεου, δικαιοσυνη τε και ἁγιασμος και απολύτρωσις

31 Ινα, καθώς γεγραπται· Ὁ καυχωμενος, εν Κυρίῳ καυ χασω.

« vanity of the philosophers, the pride of the rulers, the malice of the Jews, "the learning of the Greeks, and the power of Rome !" But the weaker the instruments who converted the world, the greater was the display of the power of God by which they acted. See 2 Cor. iv. 7. notes.

Ver. 281. Those who are not, are dead persons. Matth. ii. 18. Rachel weeping for her children, because they are not; because they are dead. Now in the eastern phrase, dead ones are those who, in comparison of others, are to the purposes for which they are chosen, as unfit as if they were dead.

Ver. 30.—1. Wisdom from God, is that scheme of religion, which the wisdom of God hath contrived for the salvation of the world. See chap. ii. 6. note 1. chap. xii. 8. note 1.

2. Righteousness also ; that is, the author of the righteousness of faith. For it is on his account, that God counts men's faith for righteousness.

[blocks in formation]

28 And persons of low birth in the vorld, and despised persons, God hath chosen to call you, and persons who, in the opinion of the scribes and philosophers, were no persons, persons utterly unfit for the work, that he might bring to nought the boasting of those who thought themselves the only persons proper for such an undertaking:

29 That no man might boast in his presence, either as having contrived the gospel, or as having by his own power brought any one to receive it.

30 It is owing to God, therefore, and not to the ability of us preachers, that ye are believers in Christ Jesus, who is become to us the author of the gospel, which is wisdom from God, a wisdom better than any scheme of philosophy; the author of righteousness also, and sanctification, and redemption, blessings not to be obtained by philosophy.

31 So that, as it is written, he who boasteth, on account of his being a christian, let him boast, not in the preachers who converted him, but in the Lord who hath brought him into his church.

3. And sanctification: Not an external and relative, but a real internal sanctification. See Ephes. iv. 24.

4. And redemption; namely, from death the punishment of sin, by a glorius resurrection. This is called, The redemption of our body, Rom. viii. 23.

CHAPTER II.

View and Illustration of the Reasonings in this Chapter. BECAUSE the learned Greeks had objected to the gospel, the foolishness (as they were pleased to call it) of its doctrines, and the weakness of its preachers, the apostle made answer in the foregoing chapter, that by these foolish doctrines and weak preachers, a reformation had been wrought in the minds and manners of multitudes, which the boasted philosophy of the Greeks, and the eloquence of their orators, had not been able to accomplish. But this being a matter of great importance, and the faction having upbraided Paul in particular, with his want of eloquence, he now proceeded in this chapter, to tell the Corinthians, that Christ having sent him to preach, not with the wisdom of speech, (See chap. i. 17.) he acted agreeably to his commission, when he came to them, not with the excellency of speech, or of wisdom, declaring the testimony of God, ver. 1.By thus disclaiming the Grecian philosophy and rhetoric, and by calling the gospel the testimony of God, the apostle insinuated, that the credibility of the gospel depended neither on its conformity to the philosophy of the Greeks, nor on the eloquence of its preachers, but on the attestation of God, who confirmed it by miracles.-And therefore, however ridiculous it might appear in their eyes, he determined to make known nothing among the Corinthians, either in his private conversations, or in his public discourses, but Jesus Christ, and him crucified for the sins of men, ver. 2.-At the same time, knowing the opinion which the learned Greeks would form of that doctrine in particular, as well as that his discourses were neither composed nor pronounced according to the rules of the Grecian rhetoric, his first addresses to them were in weakness, and in fear, and with much trembling, ver. 3.-Yet they were accompanied with the powerful demonstration of the Spirit, who enabled him to prove the things which he preached, by miracles, ver. 4.-that the faith of mankind might be founded, not in the wisdom of men, that method of reasoning and speaking, which human wisdom dictates as best calculated to persuade, but in the power of God, ver. 5.

However, lest the things which are said in the preceding chapter, concerning the foolishness of the doctrines of the gospel, and in this chapter concerning its having no relation to any of the schemes of the Greek philosophy, might have led the Corinthians to think meanly of it; the apostle told them, that in the gospel, he and his brethren made known a scheme of doc

trine, which they who were perfectly instructed, knew to be real wisdom. Only it was not the wisdom of this world; it was none of the mysteries of the idol gods worshipped by the heathens, nor any of the religions established by the heathen rulers, who are all to be made nought, ver. 6.-What they preached, was the wisdom of the true God; a scheme of religion contrived by the true God, and made known in a real mystery. The apostle called the gospel a mystery, not because it contains doctrines absolutely unintelligible, but because being of divine original, and containing the most important discoveries, it was better entitled to the honourable appellation of a mystery, than any of those which were so named. This excellent scheme of doctrine hitherto kept secret, God determined, before the Jewish dispensation began, to publish to the world by the apostles of his Son, to their great honour; so that they are mystagogues of a mystery more excellent than the Eleusinian, or any other heathen mystery, ver. 7.-Yet when it was published, none of the rulers of this world knew it to be the wisdom of God; for if they had known it to be so, they would not have crucified the Lord, or author of all the glorious things discovered in the mystery of God's wisdom, ver. 8.—This ignorance of the rulers, the apostle observed, was occasioned by the greatness of the things contained in the mystery of God's wisdom. They were what human reason could neither discover, nor fully comprehend; agreeably to Isaiah's description of them; eye hath not seen, &c. ver. 9.— These things, however, God hath revealed to us apostles, by his Spirit for the spirit of God who inspires us, searcheth all things, even the deep counsels of God. So that we are well qualified to discover these counsels to the world, ver. 10, 11.— Farther, he told them, that the apostles had not received the inspiration of evil spirits, by which the heathen priestesses, and prophets, and mystagogues were guided, but the inspiration that cometh from God, that they might know and publish the glorious things, (see ver. 9.) which are freely bestowed by the true God, on them who believe, ver. 12.-Which things, said he, we apostles effectually make known to the world, not in language taught by human rhetoric, but in words dictated by the Spirit of God; explaining spiritual things, in spiritual words, ver. 13. Nevertheless, the animal man, the man who is guided by his animal passions and notions, does not receive the things revealed ⚫ by the Spirit; because they appear to him foolishness; neither can he understand them, because they must be examined spiri

[blocks in formation]

tually, that is, they must be examined by the light which divine revelation, and not reason, affords, ver. 14.-But the spiritual man, the man who is not guided by his animal passions, and who acknowledges the authority of revelation, and is assisted by the Spirit of God, is able to examine and receive the things revealed by the Spirit. Yet he himself is examined and judged by no animal man: because no animal man can understand the prin

OLD TRANSLATION.
CHAP. II. 1 And I,

brethren, when I came to

you, came not with ex

cellency of speech, or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined not

to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ,

and him crucified.

3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

4 And my speech, and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's

GREEK TEXT.

1 Καγω ελθων προς μας, αδελφοι, ηλθον ου καθ' ὑπε ροχην λογον η σοφιας, καταγ γελλων ὑμῖν το μαρτύριον του υμιν Θεου.

2 Ου γαρ εκρινα του ειδεκαι τι εν υμιν, ει μη Ιησουν Χριςον, και τούτον εςαυρω

μενον.

3 Και εγω εν ασθενεια και εν φοβω και εν τρομῳ πολλω εγενόμην προς ύμας.

4 Και ὁ λόγος μου και το κηρυγμα μου ουκ εν πείθοις ανθρωπινης σοφίας λόγοις,

Ver. 1.-1. Excellency of speech. The apostle means, that nice choice and arrangement of words, that artificial rounding and disposition of periods, those rhetorical connections, transitions, and figures, and those studied tones and gestures, in which, according to the Greeks, the perfection of eloquence consisted.

2. The testimony of God, that is, the things concerning Christ, which God ordered the apostles to testify; or the things which God himself attested by the miracles which he enabled the apostles to perform. See Ess. iv. 25. In either sense, the expression implies that the evidence ofthe doctrines of the gospel, is not founded on proofs drawn from human reason, but on the authority of God, who hath revealed them by his Spirit, and confirmed them by miracles.

Ver. 2.1. I determined, ειδέναι, to make known. See Ess. iv. 7. Locke's paraphrase of the passage, agrees with this translation, “I resolved to own, "or shew, no other knowledge among you." In like manner Whitby, "I de« termined not to discover any thing.”

Ver. 3.-1. In weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. The Greeks could endure no scheme of doctrine that was not conformable to their philo

.

« PreviousContinue »